“Then I’ll call.”
Silence returned.I should tell him about my childhood, make him understand my fears…He turned onto my street, and I stared at my small house, so different from Cormac’s estate. I looked down at my hands twisted in my lap. Now wasn’t the time. He had to leave early.
“And you’ll be back when?” I asked.
He sighed. “We have another away game on Wednesday, so not until Thursday. Probably mid-day.”
I sucked in a breath. “I’m going to miss you.”
He leaned in, his hand cupping my jaw, his forehead touching mine. “Not as much as I’ll miss you, pretty girl.”
“I wish…” I licked my lips and forced myself to be brave, though my stomach twisted. Baby steps.Tell him this so you can tell him more. “When you get back, do you think you’ll want me to stay with you again?”
His smile widened and his eyes sparkled, tossing off the same melancholy that tortured me. “I’d love that. In fact, I’m going to dream about you in my bed.”
Our lips brushed. “It’s a date.”
“One I’m going to be looking forward to. Very much.”
“Me, too.”
“I’ll help you with Slippers.”
Once we’d settled the cat and her stuff inside, Cormac kissed me, slow and sweet, while the cicadas hummed in the background. When he returned to his car, I slid back inside my house, already missing him. My quiet house was tidy…and altogether lonely. I moped around, trying to concentrate on work until I could finally get ready for bed.
Chapter38
Keelie
Cormac texted the next morning to let me know he’d arrived in Montreal. After a brief exchange, he signed off, letting me know he expected the conversation with his mother to be “strained.” I hated the idea of creating a wedge between Cormac and his family, and I worried over it most of the day.
Though I missed Cormac, Andy’s cuteness perked me up when I got to school. “I can tie my own shoes!” he exclaimed, pride dripping off each word. Then he showed me.
I crouched down next to him. “Wow. You’re so good at that! I’m proud of you.” I smiled. Andy hugged me, and I squeezed him back. If I’d had someone like me in my life when I was little and struggling, would my father have stayed? I would never know.
I took Andy’s hand and led him to the table and chairs. “Do you think you can grasp the pencil like I showed you before? Like this?” I’d shown him a different hold that I thought might improve his control and penmanship.
We continued to work on his writing, and once my session with him ended, the foggy sadness resettled.
At lunch, I checked my phone to find a video from Cormac that showed Naese plowing headfirst into the net, cursing a blue streak.
I laughed as I responded. Once I set down my phone, it rang, and I answered, assuming it was Cormac.
“Hello?”
“Heya, Kee! It’s Naomi. How ya doing?”
Disappointment settled in my chest. I missed Cormac too much. He’d given me a fairy-tale weekend, and I struggled to regain my normal equilibrium.
“Okay. You?”
“Great! I got in an hour of Peloton this morning. So, hey, I wanted to invite you to my watch party tomorrow night. Nicole and Doris are coming along with my sister. She’s got the hots for…well, all the single boys, but definitely Maxim.”
“Maxim is with Ida Jane,” I said. I stared down at my carrot sticks.Not my place to say anything about other people’s lives.
“The girl he met? Oh, if you have her digits, invite her, too. I’ll shoot you the address. Bring something for a spa night, ’kay? We meet an hour early to get our masks on and deep conditioner in. I hate to miss any of the game.”
“Um…”
